


3. Stand By Me

by myheartisacanvas



Series: Final Fantasy XV: Parallels [3]
Category: Fabula Nova Crystallis: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Afterlife, Friendship, Original Character Death(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-11
Updated: 2016-12-11
Packaged: 2018-09-07 20:27:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8815171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myheartisacanvas/pseuds/myheartisacanvas
Summary: Ignis' second meeting with the goddess Etro as a gateway to the world beyond.





	

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS for the ending of the game.
> 
> I was really struggling with this chapter, so sorry if the writing is not up to par. I found it hard to relate to Ignis' character throughout the game and decided to give myself a challenge by writing this chapter.

Ignis opened his eyes.

It was impossible, he knew but it somehow happened. Overwhelmed by the joy of his clear vision and trauma of all the events that happened after Altissia, his tear ducts, no longer constrained by the scars and burns that withheld his tears, poured an ocean onto his cheeks.

Ignis cried for what seemed like an eternity. Then, he saw the woman.

She was the same height as he was, and wore an evening gown which trailed onto the floor. But somehow, her presence seemed a lot bigger, as if it could dwarf the whole space or possibly even beyond.

“Welcome back to the Light, my child,” she said. In a flash, Ignis recognized her from the paintings at the palace and storybooks of his childhood.

“G…goddess…” said Ignis. How does one acknowledge a God? Does one greet them using formal court protocol reserved for royalty? Or does one prostate themselves and start chanting like they do in temples and churches? Ignis decided to combine the two.

Ignis prostated himself silently in front of Etro, the Keeper of the Door of Souls.

“You need not bow in front of me, Savior of the Realm,” said Etro. “Not only have you saved Eos from an unending darkness, but this is also not our first meeting.”

“Have we realy…?” asked Ignis. Then, with a flash he remembered: a woman floating beside him as he was plunging underwater in Altissia, her hair and dress still despite the temper of the waves.

He had dismissed it as a hallucination afterwards, induced by the physical and mental stress accumulated since the days of King Regis’ death. But now, Ignis knew.

“I fear that this will be our last meeting,” said Etro. “Where you go now, my power has no hold.”

Ignis remembered his friends with a jolt.

“Prompto, Gladio, Noctis…where are they?” he asked.

“They are here as well, preparing to make the same journey as you.”

“So when we pass into the afterlife, we’ll be together once more.” Ignis breathed a sigh of relief. He had a sudden sense of déjà vu, as if he had said those words before: …at least we can be together once more.

“I cannot control the memories or reincarnations in the other realm. What goodbyes that one wanted must have been said before our meeting.”

Although Ignis thought he had finished crying, his tear ducts started to flow anew.

“Please, there has to be something you can do,” Ignis said. “We’ve just been fighting and fighting and all we want is to do is…”

Ignis closed his eyes and remembered his friends past Altissia. Without his vision, the hurt behind their voices seemed worse, and the pain in the atmosphere was so thick he wished he could cut it.

“My child…” Etro began.

More memories came. Prompto’s warm hugs when anyone felt down, Gladio triumphantly screaming at the daemon he slew for dinner, Noctis giving one of his rare laughs…

“…to fucking relax by one another’s side. We’ve been together through worse and I’ll be damned if I let a goddess keep us apart!” Ignis said, his usual reserve gone.

“Dare you threaten a celestial being?!” Etro said. Though her figure and expression didn’t change, Ignis detected a sudden tension in the air. It was as if static electricity suddenly filled the entire space and one false move could bring heavenly fire through his body. Or worse, through his soul.

“I apologize, Etro. I was wrong,” said Ignis, prostrating even lower. “We mortals can be very stubborn. But I assure you, it’s our love for one another that keeps us going.”

There was a long pause where Ignis feared for his soul.

“You children may be stubborn,” said Etro. “But love is not one of your flaws, I have seen to it many years ago.”

The electrifying tension in the air vanished as quickly as it came. “I shall grant your wish, Ignis Scientia, but along with a sacrifice, just as we had done last time.”

 “I…I gave my eyes?”

“Your soul would have long departed otherwise.” Suddenly, Ignis felt guilty. The times that he had secretly grumbled about his vision and screamed out to the gods why they would curse him. But it hadn’t been a curse at all. It had been a miracle, every minute and every second of it.

 “Take anything…” said Ignis.

“So it shall be,” said Etro. “A curse of my choosing for your reunion.”

“Wait, please tell me,” said Ignis. “I beg you to tell me…about our next lives.”

“Royal blood is what caused this untimely separation, and it was the barrier between two of your friends. So royal blood shall be expunged from everyone’s reincarnation.”

Our lives will be so much harder…Ignis thought. No free meals from adoring shopowners, no servants at our beck and call, no luxury vehicles or brand name clothing.

But he grit his teeth; Ignis was never one to back away from hardworkedness and if he had to endure the life of a farmer to be reunited with everyone, so be it.

“Magic is what caused this untimely death, and was the reason of Noctis’ suffering. So the world you shall be born in will have no magic.”

“No magic?!” Ignis burst out loud. “But it could be dangerous.”

“Fear not, my child. This world will be far less dangerous than yours’, and the ones who live there use another form of power to keep the elements at bay.”

Ignis shut his mouth. Etro knew the other realm, it was best to leave her to the decision-making.

“Rest assured, you and your friends will find one another and there will be new sets of adventures to embark upon. Though none of your memories will remain, the kinship you all have demonstrated in front of me will carry on.”

“Thank you, thank you so much,” said Ignis, trembling with relief. I will find you guys, Ignis thought. All of you…

“Now comes your sacrifice of my choosing.” Ignis froze. He had completely forgotten about it.

“Not only will your eyesight be worse, but you will also have hearing problems. But fear not, I will not take both away completely; I believe a decade as a blind man is enough for your soul.”

“I…I accept,” said Ignis.

“Then close your eyes,” said Etro, “and leave everything behind.”

“Wait…” said Ignis. “I just have one last question before I sleep.”

“I may already know it, but ask away, my child.”

“Will we get separated again? What happens if something happens and we…don’t appreciate each other as much?”

“That,” Etro said, “will be completely up to you.”

And so, for his last time as Ignis Scientia, Ignis closed his eyes.


End file.
